Thursday, March 30, 2006

IP Value 2006: "Successful product creation and distribution are fundamental to any business strategy. And neither process is possible without intellectual property rights. Now, more than ever, the ability to generate and safeguard intellectual property value is a crucial differentiator for organisations worldwide. Intellectual property is firmly established as a boardroom issue, involving significant strategic legal, tax and corporate finance issues.This website brings together advice in all three areas, provided by leading advisers in their respective fields. It has been designed to provide boardroom readers with a coherent and comprehensive framework on which to build their IP strategies. "

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

I've been telling people this for years, but he says it much much better :)

Perspective: The endangered joy of serendipity: "Think about the library. Do people browse anymore? We have become such a directed people. We can target what we want, thanks to the Internet. Put a couple of key words into a search engine and you find - with an irritating hit or miss here and there - exactly what you're looking for. It's efficient, but dull. You miss the time-consuming but enriching act of looking through shelves, of pulling down a book because the title interests you, or the binding. Inside, the book might be a loser, a waste of the effort and calories it took to remove it from its place and then return. Or it might be a dark chest of wonders, a life-changing first step into another world, something to lead your life down a path you didn't know was there."

Took the day off work and went into the city. Toronto that is. Was in the audience of CityLine with Marilyn Denis. It was interesting to see live television being created. We only got on TV for a few seconds in a audience scan. I guess we were seated in the wrong (or maybe right) place.

I won a door prize in addition to the loot they give every audience member.

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Perhaps this has been there for a while, but I just noticed it. And I think it is just grand!

On our Wiley titles, in the table of contents, there is now a link "References" beside the usual "PDF" etc. This takes you to a page of only the references from that particualr paper. Nothing exciting so far, however, attached to each of the references is a link -- a link to full text options for that paper.

If it is a Wiley paper, you just go there directly, but if it is another publisher, you go to a page where you have the options of ChemPort, PubMed, etc.

We often have researchers find an excellent paper and then want copies of many of the references. This makes life so much easier for our researchers and for my assistant (and me too)!!!

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Quick Picks: Semi-Conducting Polymer (Polythiophene): "Chemists work on plastic promise. 'The invention could eventually slash the cost of flat panel screens and bring electronic paper into common use. The new material can also be laid down using simple printing techniques rather than the expensive and elaborate methods used to process silicon.'"

What's the verdicton peer review? The judgment of colleagues plays a critical part in how grants are distributed, journal articles are selected, and careers are formed. Yet this system may raise ethical dilemmas. 21stC explores how peer review really works, and how it might work better "

Science Articles || Science News Forum: "ChemRefer's monthly Newsletter covers sources of quality, open access chemistry literature. The Newsletter also includes links to the most interesting journal articles found by ChemRefer that month. "

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Donna's Mid Career Librarian Blog: "Hello everyone! As a mid-career librarian, I'm feeling a bit left out in the dark with the newest bleeding edge technology so I'm creating this blog to see if there are others out there just like me.

I have been an academic librarian at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario since 1988.

I'd like to hear from others in how they are 'keeping up' while managing departments at the same time. Yikes, sometimes I feel like it's a losing battle. Other days are great.

The Engineering Division of the Special Libraries Association is calling for nominations for their Engineering Librarian of the Year Award. The annual award is sponsored by Elsevier and highlights the accomplishments and contributions of members to the engineering librarian profession. The 2006 award winner will be presented with a plaque and $1,500 stipend at the SLA Engineering Division annual business meeting held during the SLA annual conference.

Prospective candidates are encouraged to nominate themselves or an associate.

Nomination Deadline: March 30th

Criteria for entry are: 1. Membership in good standing for one year in the SLA Engineering Division as of January 1 of the year in which the award is given.2. Distinguished achievement in the engineering library profession, through an exceptional contribution on the job, within the SLA Engineering Division, or within the industry at large. This accomplishment should have taken place within the calendar year immediately preceding the nomination.However, in selected cases, based solely on the Awards Committee�s judgment, recognition may be given for an ongoing, long-term contribution.

Thursday, March 9, 2006

The Canadian Tire couple is no more.When the retailer unveiled its new spring ad campaign Thursday, the bearded handyman Ted and his wife Gloria were nowhere to be seen.The famous pitch-couple had been showing off innovative products for the hardware chain for almost a decade. Loved by some and hated by many, the couple had transcended advertising into the realm of pop culture, where they were parodied by the likes of Royal Canadian Air Farce and This Hour has 22 Minutes."

Alexandria, Virginia, 9 March 2005 – The Special Libraries Association (SLA) announces the results of its 2006 Board of Directors elections today. The 2006 election was the first SLA has conducted using an Internet-based voting system. Of the 2,870 members of the Association who voted, 93 percent of them cast their ballots online.

Stephen Abram, Vice President of Innovation at SirsiDynix and a leading thinker in the North American library community, was elected to serve as the association’s next President-Elect. His term as SLA President will begin in January 2008.

Abram and the other newly-elected board members will be installed to the SLA Board of Directors at the Association’s 97th Annual Conference in Baltimore, 11-14 June. Others elected include:

Tamika Barnes McCollough, Head of Reference and Information Literacy, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro.

For more information on the newly-elected members of the SLA Board of Directors, please visit the 2006 Election Results page on the SLA Web site.

About SLAThe Special Libraries Association (SLA) is a nonprofit global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners. SLA serves more than approximately 11,000 members in 75 countries in the information profession, including corporate, academic, and government information specialists. SLA promotes and strengthens its members through learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives. For more information, visit us on the Web at www.sla.org.

Friday, March 3, 2006

BUFFALO, New York -- The Buffalo Sabres beat the New York Islanders to the punch Friday, retiring Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine's No. 16 in a ceremony prior to their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.A native of St. Louis, LaFontaine has yet to have his number raised to the rafters by New York.Drafted third overall by the Islanders in 1983, LaFontaine scored 19 goals in his rookie season of 1984-85 before recording six straight 30-goal campaigns with New York, including a career-high 54 in 1989-90. He was traded to Buffalo in a seven-player deal involving Pierre Turgeon in October 1991 and spent six seasons with the Sabres before concluding his career with the New York Rangers in 1997-98.In 268 games with Buffalo, LaFontaine recorded 158 goals and 227 assists. He set the club record for most assists (95) and points (148) in a season in 1992-93 and established the franchise mark for most goals in a campaign by a center with 53 in 1992-93.Along with LaFontaine's family, on hand to participate in the festivities were the four players who previously had their numbers retired by the Sabres -- Hall of Famers Tim Horton (2) and Gilbert Perreault (11) as well as the former Buffalo captain's 'French Connection' linemates Rick Martin (7) and Rene Robert (14).Despite having his career hampered by concussions, the 41-year-old LaFontaine registered 468 goals and 1,013 points in 865 games. The 1984 United States Olympian was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003."